A socio-technical framework for digital contact tracing

Ricardo Vinuesa; Andreas Theodorou; Manuela Battaglini; Virginia Dignum

doi:10.1016/j.rineng.2020.100163

A socio-technical framework for digital contact tracing

Results Eng. 2020 Dec:8:100163. doi: 10.1016/j.rineng.2020.100163. Epub 2020 Aug 28.

Authors

Ricardo Vinuesa¹, Andreas Theodorou², Manuela Battaglini³, Virginia Dignum²

Affiliations

¹ SimEx/FLOW, Engineering Mechanics, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, SE-100 44, Stockholm, Sweden.
² Responsible AI Group, Department of Computing Science, Umeå University, SE-90358, Umeå, Sweden.
³ Transparent Internet, Tårup Bygade 30, DK-5370, Mesinge, Denmark.

Abstract

In their efforts to tackle the COVID-19 crisis, decision makers are considering the development and use of smartphone applications for contact tracing. Even though these applications differ in technology and methods, there is an increasing concern about their implications for privacy and human rights. Here we propose a framework to evaluate their suitability in terms of impact on the users, employed technology and governance methods. We illustrate its usage with three applications, and with the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) guidelines, highlighting their limitations.

Keywords: COVID-19; Data privacy; Digital contact tracing; Governance.